Three Forgotten Roman Megaprojects

The longest tunnel in ancient history. A highway suspended over a raging river. A secret harbor for the Roman navy. These are three of the most impressive Roman engineering projects that you've probably never heard of.
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Chapters:
0:00 Introduction
1:24 The Tunnel of Claudius
4:33 The Iron Gates Highway
7:16 The Secret Harbor at Lake Avernus

[@QuantumHistorian]

I can't quite get my head around the fact that Agrippa wanted the element of surprise so badly that he trained a secret fleet, built using secret facilities around a secret lake that was connected to the sea by a series of secret passages. In any other era, even contemplating this would be lunacy. Yet it contributed significantly to Agrippa winning. Just shows how thin the line between genius and madness can be...

[@jefferyindorf699]

Octavius, the original Bond villan

[@Tinil0]

It shows what you can do when you have the unqualified support of the richest man in the world willing to spend anything on the problem. (I have no idea if Octavian was actually the richest man in the world at the time. Pretty sure he was later though. Point is, money makes things work).

[@johndough1703]

2023: 5 minutes later, your plans r being twerked on tictok

[@gorilladisco9108]

He could train his men faraway in the north of Italy, but that would not be spectacular.

[@dirtydangler]

@@Tinil0 "Point is, money makes things work" considering money cant buy loyalty, that's a very moot point.

[@davidec.4021]

Let’s bring out the wine and the honey fellas, Told in Stone posted again

[@kellyb1420]

Woot Woot 🙌🙌 Funny I’ve been thinking about him, lol 😂

[@lorgnetteify]

**clank** Salut! 😂😂

[@internetexplorer6097]

And slaves!

[@revert6417]

Don't forget the garum!!

[@amfa42]

hahaha excellent

[@Slutuppnu]

I just love the story of Claudius' tunnel. Everything about it is gloriously bonkers in a uniquely Roman way.

[@funfact8660]

I like the part where Agrippina was complaining to Claudius about the gold plates, cups, and serving vessels were all under water after the flood, and he said to her " You're such a great diver, perhaps you can go retrieve them ?...... 🌿🤣🌿 She was not amused whatsoever, as her brother Caligula had once banished her and her sister to a Mediterranean island to dive for sponges

[@nickbenton4881]

“This drainage tunnel should be operational now! Let’s celebrate by feasting in front of the entrance!” - the leadership of the largest empire in the world at the time

[@s0nnyburnett]

how else would you be able to see it? 😆

[@chimpazoo1143]

It would be like if Harry S Truman celebrated the trinity test by having a large barbecue right in front of it

[@userofthetube2701]

It's strange that they apparently didn't have any kind of floodgates to control the flow of water. That doesn't seem particularly high-tech after digging such an impressive tunnel.

[@danielefabbro822]

​@@chimpazoo1143 that would have been the most american thing ever. 🤔

[@Kiyoone]

@@danielefabbro822 nah, South Americans ALSO love BBQ. But we call it with other names, ofc, "barbacoa" "asado", "churrasco" etc etc. this might be older than christ

[@MartinBrenner]

It is mindblowing that Romans built a bridge over the Rhine in Cologne (similar to the bridge shown here) and after it's collapse and destruction in the Middle Ages it took until 1859 before a new fixed bridge was built.

[@Kiyoone]

To think that romans could build this WAAAAAY back in time, and this still stands after 2000 years, this is incredible...

[@pigmentpeddler5811]

It was aliens obviously

[@jichaelmorgan3796]

They obviously used ancient alien technology

[@xxjr8axx]

the stresses that the ancient roman infrastructure was very low compared to today, 18 wheelers didn't exist back then.

[@SuperPickle15]

@@xxjr8axx they also were an authoritarian government that put a lot of pride in their infrastructure. Budget was simply a pointless metrics for them. Try to explain to modern tax payers why your megaproject requires billions, so it can be greatly over engineered.

[@daanvos194]

to be an empire that constructed things that lasted 2000 years is nothing short of extrordinary

[@LordTelperion]

I’d love to see a video on Rome’s massive hexagonal Portus at Ostia.

[@M167A1]

Yes

[@barath4545]

One of my dreams is to put on some Virtual goggles and walk around a 3D model of Ostia Antica as it was at the height of its power. It is such an impressive place, even today.

[@kevindoran9389]

Do you kiss your mother with that mouth?

[@fishywishy4671]

The only port city I can think in history that may have rivaled Ostia in relative significance would be Adulis! Would be awesome to see a video covering the arguably top 3 most significant ports of all time.

[@dasstigma]

Wow, here is an idea for the entire thread: THEN MAKE ONE!

[@prkp7248]

One correction - Marcus Agrippa did not constructed Cloaca Maxima - this Sewer was build in the time of kings. What Agrippa did was big project of restoration and cleaning of it, that was finalised by his travel on a boat thought it.

[@prkp7248]

At first cloaca Maxima was build in order to drain marshes that were in the place where Forum Romanum now stands. I Recommend you the works of Ann Olga Koloski-Ostrow who write about sanitary archeology of ancient Rome.

[@ChemEDan]

I thought Cloaca Maxima was cleaned out and widened by Biggus Dickus

[@sugarnads]

​@@ChemEDanno that was the caesar augustus memorial sewer in jerusalem.

[@ZytphenA]

"Stained Greenland Ice Cap with the residue of silver mines." has got to be one of the best nuggets of knowledge I've heard.

[@Steve_Hickman]

Always amazing to discover new projects that the Romans engineered through logistics and sheer determination. They were able to do things that no one, in the centuries before or after them, was able to create until the age of industrialization.

[@TransoceanicOutreach]

The romans were surpassed in every way by the 15th century.

[@AndriyAndriyAndriy]

10:35 It's sometimes hard to wrap your head around the fact that history that we learn is in fact the history that has happened and is palpable to the extent that you literally can touch a brick that have seen an emperor of Rome.

[@sppl623]

greatest channel and modern historian of antiquity just based on your effortless ability to depict and contextualize the past in an entertaining way!

[@alessandromorter2242]

The tunnels of Claudius (in Italian I cunicoli di Claudio) are hard to visit today, however near there (30/20 min drive) there are the ruins of Alba Fucens. Key city in securing Roman hegemony in the early years. As well as acting like a prison for certain high profiles. Alba Fucens also provided security for the Via Valeria. As well as a stopping point for cattle merchants. This is backed by the many tavernas that scattered the city. Alba Fucens is free to visit and it’s open 24/7. Hope this will inspire some of you to visit this hidden jewel :)

[@ethanrummel7638]

So glad to see a new upload! I got an MSc in classics, researching Roman Slavery and am waiting on PhD apps to get back to me. This channel has helped revitalize some of my curiosity on the subject of the ancient world, so thank you for your work and all you do!

[@toldinstone]

My pleasure; good luck on your applications!

[@cerberus6654]

Good luck on your applications! Should it be successful I would say you have to repay Dr. G for his revitalization by purchasing at least five copies of his book!

[@frhate]

good luck!!

[@kimberlyperrotis8962]

Bravo, great choice. I became a geologist out of pure love of the subject and had the best career, but I am so tempted to go back and study classics. My interest in classical history and languages has kept increasing throughout my lifetime, partly because of my Greek heritage, I think. My Dad is from Greece, or Hellas, asI prefer to call it, but of a clearly Northern Italian name (having some Gaulish or Germanic genes would account for his great height for a Greek man). I love to speculate in how that came to happen, certainly his family was Greek for many generations. I’m sure you’ll get some wonderful offers to doctorate programs.🙂

[@theoztreecrasher2647]

@@kimberlyperrotis8962 Is the Greek name for their homeland "Hellas" or "Alas" these days? 😜🙄😁

[@chrisbelos2834]

The tunnel of Claudius has a crazy history wow

[@westrim]

5:02 between this shot and the hillside face in the next image, I get strong Argonath from the Lord of the Rings vibes (the two statues that flank the Anduin river, which the the Fellowship rows past).

[@MTGnEWbie420]

i live near that statue , and around the bridge . The statue was build in early 2000 tho carved in stone , still very impressing

[@rayoflight62]

Thank you for this video, Prof. I've been at Averno Lake. The history of the Naval base of Miseno is fascinating, because the Romans built their "Trireme" ships in the secret harbor at Averno Lake, which suddenly appeared at Misenum ready for battle. Thank you for all your fascinating videos on the Roman world. I love Roman history and every detail is important. Greetings from the UK, Anthony

[@dgc622]

I just finished reading your book! Really enjoyed it! Thank you for all of the content you create for us!

[@SobekLOTFC]

Keep up the great work, Garrett 👏

[@dougmartin7129]

I’ve done a quite a few trips to this region but I’ve never searched for these kinds of fascinating remains. I will try to get back just to visit the hidden gems. Do you ever do tours? Maybe two weeks or so would be great. Your knowledge would be fantastic to accompany the visuals.

[@kimberlyperrotis8962]

Great idea for Garrett to do tours to these, more off the beaten track, Roman construction projects. Even his videos are so appreciated, 99% of videos only cover the same old things, the Coliseum, Pantheon, etc. We all know about all of that since about age 12.🙂

[@ronorazine9105]

Interesting the map of the Roman empire is on of the most accurate. If it included client kingdoms it becomes at least a third larger. For instance parthia was made a client kingdoms I believe by Trajan. The ruler was appointed by Rome. Other such areas where all around the empire I remember reading about location along the Red Sea on the Arabian coast. I had a book called Rome moves east was quite surprised of their reach.

[@coco805]

This was really great, but it was so dense that I had to pause it about a dozen times to be able to process everything you said and all the images. I was totally blown away by the scale of these roman projects, they seem so modern.

[@OnekamaProducts]

Can you narrate a 30-60 minute long story video similar to the nightlife where a wealthy man went to the bar and then a dinner party afterwards. That was an amazing video, i was in Rome inside my head. Pleaseeee!

[@sintenal4078]

With delight and an eager smile I take yet another journey with Dr. Ryan. I learn something new with every video, thank you so for all of your continued efforts.

[@MarioHernandez-yt4mz]

As usual, great video. Thank you for such a wonderful content.

[@edgarsnake2857]

Great video on historically obscure projects that would be big news even today. Deep research from Toldinstone. Thanks.

[@schedelworld]

This was excellent, as always! Thanks for making great shows. Picked up your book on Kindle recently, and looking forward to diving into it!

[@Ikokaoniko]

Good and informative video. The name of the architect who was responsible for the Trajan's stone bridge (and almost every other fascinating building project related to Trajan) was Apollodorus Of Damascus.

[@Hilqy]

gotta love when theres a new told in stone vid!!!!!

[@jozsefizsak]

That was fantastic! Thank you so much for the astonishing history.

[@romanancientcoins8200]

Love your content! Always informative

[@Amethyst_Dragon_]

Thank you for posting.... This video was awesome 👍

[@cameron.t]

30,000 men, huh? Wow, it’s almost like mega projects and keeping infrastructure in good shape is an excellent way of keeping people busy (or employed).

[@CarthagoMike]

Amazingly interesting video as always!

[@edwardfletcher7790]

This was fascinating and well told, thank you 👍

[@austink3621]

amazing as always

[@bassmaster3145]

Great video as always, Toldin!

[@miroBGgsi]

Would be nice to see more videos on the roman projects on the Balkans. Constantine's Bridge on Danube for example, connecting Sucidava (Romania) and Oescus (Bulgaria).

[@MoreFormosa]

amazing stuff, thanks for sharing these ancient secrets

[@bazzatheblue]

That was a bloody good video as we say round my way.

[@johnspizziri1919]

Excellent. Thanks for making my day!

[@keithagn]

It's incredible the buildings, projects and other works they could accomplish. Great video! Thank you! Regards from Canada 🇨🇦

[@atlantic_love]

6:23 amazing to me that part of the relief shows the reflections of the water flooding the area. Look on the right side of the relief, toward the back.

[@FlexibleFlyer50]

Fascinating material! You never fail to disappoint. I am not amazed that the Romans tackled these large-scale projects. They thought "big," and they came up with the means to try to make these projects a reality.

[@scrollop]

Your content is so interesting. Thank you!

[@ideadlift20kg83]

Thank you so much for these amazing videos! I love you!

[@albinlindmark1383]

This was so good, loved it!

[@fleischer236]

Yoooo bruh This is my favorite type of Told In Stone video!

[@mrAMMW]

i have been at the iron gates many times while traveling and i never knew about the Tabula Traiana until now

[@apollion888]

gave you a thumbs up before even seeing it, these are the kind of videos I love

[@v.g.r.l.4072]

Great video, as always.

[@garlicbreathandfarts]

Super interesting, thanks!

[@PJDonoghue]

Incredible video!

[@GreenMntMoto]

superb content and info

[@silentgolden8507]

I'm going to be putting an order in for your book I read the table of contents, looks like a great read.

[@peterhutley4254]

Fantastic as always

[@johnwedow2117]

Thank you for your work . Cheers

[@airingcupboard]

This was excellent.

[@richardlilley6274]

Thank you for sharing

[@shaunfinnegan6546]

Keep ‘em coming!

[@GrandPrixDecals]

Brilliant episode 👍

[@mauricedamage425]

great research and video! how about a vid with a full catalogue of Trajan's Column????

[@shinola228]

Aligning the vertical shafts to the horizontal tunnel would be challenging. That Is some impressive work.

[@mattward5010]

this is a amazing work

[@markp44288]

Fantastic video! Thank you!

[@ronaldl9085]

Amazing stuff!!!

[@Oldwhiteguy]

That was awesome!! I never knew of the tunnel, very interesting.

[@johnofnz]

Man I love this channel

[@Yezpahr]

Never heard about any of these before, so I was on the tip of my seat the whole time. This really shows how little they differ from us. I wouldn't even be surprised if you told us they knew how to produce electricity. (though, I would definitely be surprised if they ever used it to do work)

[@cerberus6654]

And what about Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas Dr. G? The Romans did a great job there and it wasn't discovered until, what? The 1960's?

[@Cherb123456]

Great video, thank you!

[@ruperterskin2117]

Cool. Thanks for sharing.

[@richardmeo2503]

Great show, learned a lot. Our world does not realize how much it exists due to the Roman Empire and their engineers. My family was from Salerno

[@jean-robertlombard1416]

Toujours un plaisir de regarder vos vidéos. Merci.

[@kimberlyperrotis8962]

Oui, moi, aussi.

[@prescott5328]

Awesome video

[@gaius_enceladus]

The Romans were *incredible* engineers!

[@atlantic_love]

No question about it :)

[@TheHylianBatman]

Love stuff like this.

[@markciritella9163]

What was that about Greenland’s Ice Cap?! Can we circle back to that?!

[@cerberus6654]

recently ice cores drilled in Greenland revealed a lot of lead that was proven to have been the result of Roman smelting - burned off into the atmosphere and settling there.

[@sodadrinker89]

The Romans burned so much stuff that the pollution left a mark in Greenland's ice cap.

[@AdrianESabau]

Scientists have been able to get some data on the extent of Roman mining in Spain by extracting samples from the ice cap in Greenland, where the pollution haf left traces. There are several articles describing this interesting aspect better than I can, on the interwebs.

[@klamin_original]

I love your book. Seriously. Greetings from Germany

[@teal0161]

Great intro sound effects

[@leonardblakley611]

Love reading historic fiction about the period of change from the Roman republic to the imperial rule but this true story is one of the best. Agrippa was genius and it is entirely plausible to argue that without him and his loyalty, Augustus would never have achieved his pinnacle of power. The story of Lake Avernus is truly one of ingenuity and confidence. With the later building Pantheon, brilliance as a military commander and other feats along the way), Agrippa should have a greater place in Rome's history than most people realize.

[@shotforshot5983]

I wonder if Claudius meddled in the tunnel's design and construction, or perhaps replaced engineers by whim or by whip. Subscribed BTW.

[@MrTelfs]

awesome I love learning about lost history

[@markmuller7962]

The naval battle part, me: Of course the romans had to celebrate that way 😂😅

[@maxasaurus3008]

More please.❤

[@Julian-tf8nj]

Interesting... but a little short on details. I'd love to see more diagrams, and a deeper analysis, please

[@chowd.a.d.8309]

Great work!. What about Hadrian's villa, at Tivoli. All the best.

[@beerenmusli8220]

Very impressive!

[@TAZAR_II]

I wonder what happened to the first project manager after it came in a few feet off and the lake didn't drain. He probably ended up on a raft for the second grand opening.

[@tomkus333]

Now the great Barbegal mill, the aqueducts in the south of France, the Antonine rampart and..Thank you very much, great. Tom

[@Perebynis]

Great video! Btw., I never realized how many volcanic craters there are in the Bay of Naples area (9:00)! 🤯

[@GordoGambler]

Won't be long until it blows again. 4,500 year cycle. It's bubbling now ...

[@camfox1]

Could you make a video on how Greeks and Romans saw each other? I once heard that, even before conquering Greece, Romans were allowed to participate in the Olympic Games. I’m curious about how these two distinct groups saw each other, and what this participation in the games represented to each other’s perception of “hellenic-ness’.

[@panakoz13]

I would love a vid about that too!

[@danimayb]

Same! But i can kick things off by saying the Romans very much admired the Greeks, They assimilated their architecture, political systems and scientific knowledge.. And built on it.

[@Jaman1232]

@@danimayb Dont forget their pantheon :D with their own twist

[@marniusvanderlubbe]

another banger vid

[@Mumbamumba]

Fascinating.

[@AintGottaClue]

Well done, sir. Always enjoy your content

[@QuantumHistorian]

We often compare fiction (especially fantasy) to real history. In this case, I think that fiction might shed a light on how post-Roman but pre-modern people viewed the remains of such projects; specifically, what Tyrion and Jonah from GoT say when they pass through old Valyria: _"How many centuries until we learn to build cities like this again? [... they] were the best in the world at almost everything. And then..."_ _"And then they weren't"_

[@sushipsychose]

Rather easy, actually. You do it on the backs of tens of thousands of slaves that you work to death. Could be a little difficult, however, if you find yourself with the wrong parents, or more precisely, belonging to any family but a few houses at the very top. Same today, no matter how many liars tell you the grindset was everything; those people also told Roman slaves that slavery is actually a mutually beneficial relationship. It's funny, actually, how I left a comment here referencing how, in GoT (and for Roman senators) the actual, common people mostly don't exist or are a nuisance at best, and then I see this comment of yours right away.

[@QuantumHistorian]

Btw, am I the only one who sees an arrow with "1 reply" below the parent comment, but can't see any comment? (I guess now it says 2 replies but only this one is visible).

[@sushipsychose]

@@QuantumHistorian I replied to your comment, good to know KZbin just hides comments at their leisure with no disclosure whatsoever for saying something mildly polemic about history. Let's say I made a point about how for Roman senators and in Game of Thrones alike, the people don't exist, barely exist, or are an annoyance, yet it's the people who live in countries, work, and build structures at the behest of a vanishing minority - and may need _convincing_ to do so by that very minority which in turn get more and more convinced of their own virtue

[@Ezullof]

I kinda disagree with that perspective, because it's exactly the kind of words that are tempting to put in the mouth of the people of the "dark" era of the "middle" ages... but it's not what they actually thought. Medieval people saw themselves as the direct heirs and continuation of the romans, and they were right in many ways. It's just that for them, the continuation that mattered was religious and institutional. Our vision of classical Rome comes from the Renaissance, which is precisely when intellectuals decided that the middle ages didn't matter. But it's an artificial distinction. In fact, your quote could easily be found in the mouth of a thinker of the Renaissance as they completely ignore centuries of history.

[@QuantumHistorian]

@@Ezullof I don't know... The people of Verona thought that their amphitheatre had been built by demons, because they couldn't comprehend something like that being built by humans. In post Roman Britain the whole concept of a city, or even of masonry, was lost. Check out one of his interviews on his other channels for the drastic changes in many parts of the west after the fall.

[@n0gulag]

Good stuff

[@leeedsonetwo]

Fascinating

[@Transilvanian90]

Octavian to Agrippa when the War with Little Pompey started, in his best Sauron voice: "Build me a navy worthy of ROME"

[@timholland1764]

Very cool video